Method and apparatus for creating underground or interior drone routes

ABSTRACT

An approach is provided for creating underground drone routes. The approach, for example, involves querying digital map data for at least one underground and/or interior passageway to reach a destination of the drone. The digital map data includes location data for a plurality of entry points, a plurality of exit points, or a combination thereof to the network of underground and/or interior passageways. The approach also involves generating a route to the destination via the at least one underground passageway based on the location data.

BACKGROUND

The growing use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or aerial drones hasraised concerns about increased drone traffic. This increased traffic,for instance, can lead to increased safety risks (e.g., to the public orthe drones themselves) as well as noise pollution from drones flyingabove streets and buildings. Eventually, such concerns may lead towidespread opposition to the commercial or private use of drones.Accordingly, service providers and manufacturers face significanttechnical challenges to operating drones while also minimizing theirimpacts on the airspace above populated areas.

SOME EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS

Therefore, there is a need for an approach for creating undergroundand/or interior drone routes as an alternative to operating drones inthe above ground or outside airspace.

According to one embodiment, a method comprises querying digital mapdata for at least one underground and/or interior passageway to reach adestination of the drone. The digital map data includes or is associatedwith location data for a plurality of entry points, a plurality of exitpoints, or a combination thereof to the network of underground and/orpassageways. The method also comprises generating a route to thedestination via the at least one underground and/or passageway based onthe location data.

According to another embodiment, an apparatus comprises at least oneprocessor, and at least one memory including computer program code forone or more computer programs, the at least one memory and the computerprogram code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause, atleast in part, the apparatus to query digital map data for at least oneunderground and/or interior passageway to reach a destination of thedrone. The digital map data includes or is associated with location datafor a plurality of entry points, a plurality of exit points, or acombination thereof to the network of underground and/or interiorpassageways. The apparatus is also caused to generate a route to thedestination via the at least one underground and/or interior passagewaybased on the location data.

According to another embodiment, a computer-readable storage mediumcarries one or more sequences of one or more instructions which, whenexecuted by one or more processors, cause, at least in part, anapparatus to query the digital map data for at least one undergroundand/or interior passageway to reach a destination of the drone. Thedigital map data includes or is associated with location data for aplurality of entry points, a plurality of exit points, or a combinationthereof to the network of underground and/or interior passageways. Theapparatus is also caused to generate a route to the destination via theat least one underground and/or interior passageway based on thelocation data.

According to another embodiment, an apparatus comprises means forquerying digital map data for at least one underground and/or interiorpassageway to reach a destination of the drone. The digital map dataincludes or is associated with location data for a plurality of entrypoints, a plurality of exit points, or a combination thereof to thenetwork of underground and/or passageways. The apparatus also comprisesmeans for generating a route to the destination via the at least oneunderground and/or passageway based on the location data.

In addition, for various example embodiments of the invention, thefollowing is applicable: a method comprising facilitating a processingof and/or processing (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at leastone signal, the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least onesignal based, at least in part, on (or derived at least in part from)any one or any combination of methods (or processes) disclosed in thisapplication as relevant to any embodiment of the invention.

For various example embodiments of the invention, the following is alsoapplicable: a method comprising facilitating access to at least oneinterface configured to allow access to at least one service, the atleast one service configured to perform any one or any combination ofnetwork or service provider methods (or processes) disclosed in thisapplication.

For various example embodiments of the invention, the following is alsoapplicable: a method comprising facilitating creating and/orfacilitating modifying (1) at least one device user interface elementand/or (2) at least one device user interface functionality, the (1) atleast one device user interface element and/or (2) at least one deviceuser interface functionality based, at least in part, on data and/orinformation resulting from one or any combination of methods orprocesses disclosed in this application as relevant to any embodiment ofthe invention, and/or at least one signal resulting from one or anycombination of methods (or processes) disclosed in this application asrelevant to any embodiment of the invention.

For various example embodiments of the invention, the following is alsoapplicable: a method comprising creating and/or modifying (1) at leastone device user interface element and/or (2) at least one device userinterface functionality, the (1) at least one device user interfaceelement and/or (2) at least one device user interface functionalitybased at least in part on data and/or information resulting from one orany combination of methods (or processes) disclosed in this applicationas relevant to any embodiment of the invention, and/or at least onesignal resulting from one or any combination of methods (or processes)disclosed in this application as relevant to any embodiment of theinvention.

In various example embodiments, the methods (or processes) can beaccomplished on the service provider side or on the mobile device sideor in any shared way between service provider and mobile device withactions being performed on both sides.

For various example embodiments, the following is applicable: Anapparatus comprising means for performing a method of any of the claims.

Still other aspects, features, and advantages of the invention arereadily apparent from the following detailed description, simply byillustrating a number of particular embodiments and implementations,including the best mode contemplated for carrying out the invention. Theinvention is also capable of other and different embodiments, and itsseveral details can be modified in various obvious respects, all withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, thedrawings and description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature,and not as restrictive.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The embodiments of the invention are illustrated by way of example, andnot by way of limitation, in the figures of the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 is a diagram of a system capable of providing underground and/orinterior routing or mapping for drones, according to one embodiment;

FIGS. 2A and 2B are diagrams illustrating example passageways thatsupport drone routing, according to one embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a of the components of a drone routing platform, according toone embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a process for mapping underground and/orinterior drone routes, according to one embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a diagram of an example mapping user interface for presentingmap data for underground drone routes, according to one embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a process for generating underground and/orinterior drone routes, according to one embodiment;

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example user interface forrequesting an underground route for a drone, according to oneembodiment;

FIG. 8 is a diagram of a geographic database capable of storing map datafor underground/interior drone routing, according to one embodiment;

FIG. 9 is a diagram of hardware that can be used to implement anembodiment;

FIG. 10 is a diagram of a chip set that can be used to implement anembodiment; and

FIG. 11 is a diagram of a mobile terminal (e.g., handset or drone orpart thereof) that can be used to implement an embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF SOME EMBODIMENTS

Examples of a method, apparatus, and computer program for providingunderground and/or interior routing or operation of drones aredisclosed. In the following description, for the purposes ofexplanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to providea thorough understanding of the embodiments of the invention. It isapparent, however, to one skilled in the art that the embodiments of theinvention may be practiced without these specific details or with anequivalent arrangement. In other instances, well-known structures anddevices are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid unnecessarilyobscuring the embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a diagram of a system capable of providing underground and/orinterior routing or mapping for drones, according to one embodiment. Asnoted above, the use of drones (e.g., unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)and/or any other type of remotely operated vehicle) is becoming morewidespread. Generally, a drone 101 operates by flying above streets 103,buildings 105 a and 105 b (also collectively referred to as buildings105), and/or other public spaces where flight restrictions often apply.For example, drone flights might have to be limited during night hoursto reduce noise pollution and related disturbances during typical sleepor rest times. In another example, drone flights might have to berestricted during severe weather events that could affect the drone101's ability to operate. In addition, any crashing or malfunctioning ofthe drone 101 can pose serious threat to people and/or things below thedrone 101's flight path. Other issues can include privacy concernsarising from operating drones 101 equipped with cameras or other sensorsnear buildings or people. Therefore drone manufacturers, serviceproviders, operators, etc. face significant technical challenges toreducing the safety risks, noise pollution, privacy concerns, and/orother detrimental effects of conventionally operating a drone 101 in theabove ground airspace.

To address this problem, a system 100 of FIG. 1 introduces a capabilityto map and/or route drones 101 through networks 107 of undergroundpassageways 109 other interior passageways 110 (e.g., elevator shafts,ventilation ducts, crawl spaces, etc.) that are inside the buildings 105to advantageously avoid operating in the above ground airspace includingthe airspace outside of buildings 105. By enabling the undergroundoperation and/or interior operation (e.g., within buildings 105 orsimilar structures) of drones 101, the system 100 avoids or otherwisemitigates the safety risks, noise pollution, privacy concerns, etc.associated with conventional drone flights above ground. The system 100,for instance, can map the network of underground passageways 109 and/orinterior passageways 110 in respective geographic areas that areavailable for drone operation (e.g., based on the physicalcharacteristics or dimensions of the drones 101 and/or passageways 109or 110). This map data can then be used to generate underground and/orinterior drone routes or flight plans. In some embodiments, the system100 can also combine the digital map data of the underground passageways109 and/or interior passageways 110 with real-time data about theavailability of the mapped passageways 109 and/or 110 for droneoperation to determine the routes or time slots for underground/interiordrone travel.

More specifically, in one embodiment, the system 100 (e.g., via a dronerouting platform 111) creates digital map data (e.g., stored in ageographic database 113) of available underground passageways 109 and/orinterior passageways 110 along with the entry points 115 and exit points117 that can facilitate or allow a drone 101 to enter or exit theunderground passageways 109 and/or interior passageways 110. By way ofexample, underground passageways 109 can include but are not limited toexisting underground infrastructure such as underground tunnels (e.g.,for underground transport such as subways), sewer lines, and/or othertype of passageway through which a drone 101 can fit or operate. Asdiscussed above, interior passageways 110 can include but are notlimited to existing elevator shafts, ventilation ducts, crawl spaces,utility spaces, and/or other equivalent interior ducts/tunnels. In otherwords, the system 100 can repurpose existing underground and/or interiorbuilding/structure infrastructure for use as drone travel paths.

However, this dual use can also result in potential conflicts betweenthe original use or purpose of the underground passageway 109 and/orinterior passageway 110 and their use as a drone travel path. Forexample, as shown in FIG. 2A, the underground passageway 109 can be anactive underground public transport tunnel 201 (e.g., a subway traintunnel). Because the public transport tunnel 201 is still active, thereis a potential that the tunnel 201 could be used a public transporttrain 203 at the same time that a drone 101 is to be routed through thetunnel 201. This can lead to a potential collision between the drone 101and the train 203.

FIG. 2B illustrates an example of another type of underground passageway109 that can be used for routing drones 101 underground. In thisexample, the type of underground passageway 109 is an active sewer 221in which the water level 223 can vary. The water level 223 can vary, forinstance, with the level of use of the sewer 221, weather conditions(e.g., rainy conditions can raise the water level 223 from stormrunoff), and/or the like. Depending on the water level 223, a drone 101may not have adequate space to fly or operate above the surface of thewater in the sewer 221. Therefore, routing the drone 101 into a sewer221 when the water level 223 is above a safe operating threshold couldresult in the drone crashing into the water if the drone is not capableof operating on or under the water. Similarly, with respect to interiorpassageways 110 (not shown in FIG. 2A) such as elevator shafts,elevators may periodically travel up and down, leading to potentialcollisions between the elevator and any drone that may be traveling inthe elevator at the time.

To address this additional problem, the system 100 can collect real-timeor near real-time data about the availability of the passageways 109and/or 110 for drone travel. In one embodiment, availability of thepassageways 109 and/or 110 refers to being free of any transientobstruction (e.g., trains, water, elevators, etc.) that may lead to apotential collision with or otherwise obstruct the operation of a drone101. For example, the real-time or near-real time data can include butis not limited to the location of any trains 203 that may be operatingin the tunnel 201. In one embodiment, the system 100 can store andpublish this real-time data to a data layer of the digital map data ofthe geographic database 113. In addition or alternatively, the system100 can use the real-time data to route the drone 101 around thereal-time location of the train 203 and/or to recommend a time slot fortaking a route through the tunnel 201 to avoid the train 203. Forrouting, the real-time data can be queried over the communicationnetwork 119 from the geographic database 113 and/or other externalsources such as, but not limited, the services platform 121, any of theservices 123 a-123 n (also collectively referred to as services 123 ofthe services platform 121, content providers 125 a-125 m (alsocollectively referred to as content providers 125), and/or any otherequivalent source. The system 100 can then create underground and/orinterior routes based on the digital map data (e.g., mapped entry points115 and exit points 117) and/or real-time data (e.g., subway trainschedules, weather data, elevator status, etc.). As discussed above, byusing underground and/or interior routes, drones 101 can be operatedwithout compromising the safety of pedestrians and vehicle traffic thatdrones 101 are more likely to encounter the outside airspace aboveground.

In one embodiment, the drone routing platform 111 includes one or morecomponents for mapping underground and/or interior drone passagewaysand/or generating underground and/or interior drone routes according tothe various embodiments described herein. As shown in FIG. 3, the dronerouting platform 111 includes a mapping module 301, a real-time datamodule 303, a routing module 305, and a drone configuration module 307.The above presented modules and components of the drone routing platform111 can be implemented in hardware, firmware, software, or a combinationthereof. It is contemplated that the functions of these components maybe combined or performed by other components of equivalentfunctionality. Though depicted as a separate entity in FIG. 1, it iscontemplated that the drone routing platform 111 may be implemented as amodule of any of the components of the system 100 (e.g., a component ofthe drone 101 and/or a client device such as user equipment (UE) 127).In another embodiment, the drone routing platform 111 and/or one or moreof the modules 301-307 may be implemented as a cloud-based service,local service, native application, or combination thereof. The functionsof these modules are discussed with respect to FIGS. 4-7 below.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a process for mapping underground and/orinterior drone routes, according to one embodiment. In variousembodiments, the drone routing platform 111 and/or any of the modules301-307 of the drone routing platform 111 may perform one or moreportions of the process 400 and may be implemented in, for instance, achip set including a processor and a memory as shown in FIG. 10. Assuch, the drone routing platform 111 and/or the modules 301-307 canprovide means for accomplishing various parts of the process 400, aswell as means for accomplishing embodiments of other processes describedherein in conjunction with other components of the system 100. Althoughthe process 400 is illustrated and described as a sequence of steps, itscontemplated that various embodiments of the process 400 may beperformed in any order or combination and need not include all of theillustrated steps. More specifically, the process 400 illustrates aprocess for creating and storing digital map representing a network ofunderground passageways 109 and/or interior passageways 110 and thecharacteristics of the passageways 109 and/or 110 with respect tosupporting underground/interior drone travel or flight.

In one embodiment (e.g., in step 401), the mapping module 301 initiatesthe underground and/or interior route mapping process by identifyingunderground passageways 109 and/or interior passageways 110 that arecapable supporting drone flight or operation. For example, the mappingmodule 301 can determine location data (e.g., latitude, longitude,altitude, and/or other geographic coordinates) for a plurality of entrypoints, a plurality of exit points, or a combination thereof to theidentified network or plurality of underground/interior passageways. Asdescribed above, the plurality of entry points facilitates an entry of adrone into the plurality of underground/interior passageways, and theplurality of exit points facilitates an exit of the drone from theplurality of underground/interior passageways.

It is contemplated that the mapping module 301 can use any means or datasource for identifying the network of underground/interior passageways.For example, the passageways can be determined by sending out dedicatedmapping vehicles or drones to identify potential underground tunnels orinterior passages, and their corresponding entry and/or exit points.These mapping vehicles or drones can also be equipped with sensors(e.g., LIDAR, RADAR, cameras, etc.) to map or capture the interior ofthe passageways (e.g., as high-resolution mesh point cloud data, 3Dmodels, image data, etc.). The mesh or model data can be a polygonal orother mathematical representation of the entry/exit points andpassageways that are mapped to geographic coordinates to provide ageographically accurate representation of the passageways. The mesh ormodel data can then be included as part of the digital map datarepresenting the entry/exit points and/or passageways in the geographicdatabase 113. In addition or alternatively, the mapping module 301 canquery or process available blueprints, diagrams, databases (e.g.,municipal databases of underground infrastructure), etc. to identifypotential underground/interior drone passageways.

In one embodiment, the mapping process also can include determiningphysical characteristic data of the plurality of entry points, theplurality of exit points, and/or the plurality of underground/interiorpassageways. The physical characteristic data, for instance, can includea physical size or dimensions (e.g., the dimensions of the opening ofthe entry/exit points, interior space of the passageways, etc.). Thisdata can then be used determine what size drones can travel through theentry/exit points and/or passageways. The supported drone size can alsotake into account how much flying or operating space is required byspecific drones to safely travel through the entry/exit points andpassageways. Accordingly, in one embodiment, the physical characteristicdata can be expressed as a supported drone size that can recorded asmetadata associated with digital map data representing each respectiveunderground/interior passageway of a mapped network.

In yet another embodiment, real-time data about the availability of themapped passageways to support travel by the drone can also be collectedand stored as a data layer or other record of the geographic database113 (step 403). It is contemplated that the real-time data can becollected and/or stored alone or in combination with the digital mapdata of the passageways and corresponding entry/exit points. In oneembodiment, the real-time data module 303 can query the real-time datafrom external databases or services providing the data (e.g., theservices platform 121, services 123, content providers 125, etc.).

For example, in scenarios where the mapped underground/interiorpassageways include an underground tunnel supporting non-drone traffic(e.g., subway train traffic), the real-time data module 303 can queryfor a schedule data for the non-drone traffic through the undergroundtunnel to represent the real-time data. In addition or alternatively,the underground tunnels and/or interior passageways can include sensorsfor detecting the real-time presence of the non-drone traffic (e.g.,trains, other vehicles, other drones, pedestrians, elevators, etc.) thatmay be present in the passageways and may potentially collide orotherwise interfere with drone travel or flight through the passageway.

In cases where the underground passageways include an underground sewer,the real-time data module 303 can monitor the water levels or otherobstructions in the sewer as part of the collected real-time data. Byway of example, the water levels can be monitored using water levelsensors in the sewers and/or predicted from contextual data such asweather data (e.g., queried from a weather service). The weather datacan then be processed to determine whether it is indicative of waterlevel in the sewer or similar underground passageways. For example, ifthe weather data indicates that it has been raining heavily over anextended period of time, storm runoff or groundwater can potentiallyincrease the water level in the sewers. In other cases, there can bescheduled releases of water (e.g., irrigation, sewer line flushing,etc.) that may be scheduled in advance. In this case, the real-time datamodule 303 can query schedule data for such events to predict waterlevels in the sewers used for drone travel.

In cases where the interior passageways include an elevator shaft, thereal-time data module 303 can monitor the real-time positions ofelevators in the shafts as part of the collected real-time data. In oneembodiment, the elevator position data or elevator scheduling data canbe transmitted to real-time data module 303 from a server associatedwith the building in which the elevator shaft is located. In addition oralternatively, the elevator shafts can include sensors that report theposition of the elevators to the real-time data module 303. The data canalso include the elevator's speed, direction of travel, and/or any otherattribute that can be used to determine or predict the expected locationof the elevator during a drone route through the elevator shaft.

It is noted that the examples of real-time data described above areprovided by way of illustration and not as limitations. It iscontemplated that the real-time data module 303 can collect real-timedata from any source (e.g., databases, sensors, etc.) that can provideinformation on the real-time availability of a mappedunderground/interior passageway to support travel by a drone. Supportingtravel by a drone refers, for instance, to having a clear path throughthe passageway that can support drone operation without risk ofpotential collisions with, e.g., other vehicles, objects, people, etc.In addition, supporting drone travel can also include having enoughclearance around the drone for safe operation of the drone. In otherwords, constricted passageways (e.g., constricted due to high waterlevels) may reduce the clearance around the drone below a safe operatingthreshold, thereby increasing potential risks to the drone so that dronetravel is not supported in such passageways.

In one embodiment (e.g., step 405), the mapping module 301 canoptionally determine and map other characteristics of the drone and/orpassageways that can be used for underground/interior drone routing. Forexample, although the various embodiments are discussed with respect toaerial drones, it is contemplated that that the drone can supportdifferent modes of operation such as, but not limited to, a flying mode,a surface or ground-based mode (e.g., travel using physical contact tothe ground or other surface such as a wall or ceiling), a submersiblemode (e.g., travel on or below water), and/or the like. Accordingly, inone embodiment, the mapping module 301 can determine the modes supportedby each respectively mapped passage and associate the supported modes ofoperation as metadata in the digital map data for the passageways. Byway of example, the mapping module 301 can determine the supported modesbased on the physical characteristic data (e.g., physical dimensions),water levels, other potential obstructions, and/or the like. Forexample, a narrow tunnel or passageway (e.g., tunnel less than 3 ft indiameter) may support a surface mode but not a flying mode, while alarger tunnel (e.g., tunnel greater than 3 ft in diameter) may support aflying mode and a surface mode. In another example, a large sewer line(e.g., greater than 6 ft in diameter) that has a water level at 50% cansupport a flying mode (e.g., by the drone flying above the surface ofthe water in the sewer), a surface mode (e.g., by the drone crawling onthe ceiling of the sewer), and a submersible mode (e.g., by the dronediving below the water level or traveling on the surface of the water).

In yet another embodiment, there could be waypoints (e.g., ledges, sidecorridors, recesses, etc., that may offer locations where a drone canwait or pause during its route. Because of the dynamic nature of theconditions in the passageways (e.g., presence of non-drone traffic,water levels, etc.), the drone can be provided a route that includessuch waypoints so that it can wait for real-time conditions to change(e.g., a train or elevator to pass, a water level to decrease) beforeproceeding to the next segment of its route when the drone executes anunderground route or flight plan. Accordingly, the mapping module 301can identify and map the locations of the waypoints in the passageways.

In step 407, the mapping module 301 associates the determined locationdata, physical characteristic data, waypoint data, supported modes ofoperation, associated real-time data, and/or other related data with thegeographic database 113. In one embodiment, the data can be associatedas separate data layers (e.g., digital map of the entry/exit points andpassageways in one layer, real-time data in another layer, etc.) forpublication to end users. In one embodiment, “associating” refers, forinstance, to storing data records associated with the determined datadirectly into geographic database 113. In addition or alternatively,“associating” can refer to referencing or linking the geographic 113 tothe determined data (e.g., an external data source or database providingthe data) without storing the corresponding data values or records inthe geographic database 113 itself. The geographic database 113 can alsoinclude digital map data representing the plurality ofunderground/interior passageways. In one embodiment, the digital mapdata can include 3D models or representations of the entry/exit pointsand/or passageways to facilitate route generation according to theembodiments described herein.

In one embodiment, the real-time data module 303 can aggregate andpublish the real-time data regarding underground/interior dronepassageways as a data layer of the geographic database 113. By way ofexample, real-time can refer to batching or aggregating the data overdefined time epochs (e.g., every 15 minutes) with the most recent timeepoch published as the real-time data and updated as each new time epochpasses.

In one embodiment, the digital map of the underground drone routes canbe used to provide data for presenting a mapping user interface (UI) 501as shown in FIG. 5. As shown, the mapping UI 501 depicts a map of thedrone underground passageways represented in the digital map of thegeographic database 113 for a geographic area of interest. The UI 501depicts a first network 503 including passageways 505 a-505 c that aresubway train tunnels with mapped drone entry/exit points 507 a-507 cindicated by a circle. The UI also presents real-time information on thelocation of a train 509 detected in the passageway 505 c (e.g., viatrain schedule data a published in the real-time data layer of thegeographic database 113). The UI 501 also depicts a second network 511including passageways 513 a and 513 b that are sewer lines with mappeddrone entry/exit points 515 a-515 c. In this example, the drone routingplatform 111 has determined that real-time data indicates that thecurrent water level in the sewer 513 a is above a threshold level forsafe operation of a drone and has marked the sewer 513 a with a “X”symbol 517 to indicate that there is “HIGH WATER”.

In another embodiment, the digital map of the underground/interior droneroutes can be used to create underground and/or interior drone routes.FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a process for generating underground and/orinterior drone routes, according to one embodiment. In variousembodiments, the drone routing platform 111 and/or any of the modules301-307 of the drone routing platform 111 may perform one or moreportions of the process 600 and may be implemented in, for instance, achip set including a processor and a memory as shown in FIG. 10. Assuch, the drone routing platform 111 and/or the modules 301-307 canprovide means for accomplishing various parts of the process 600, aswell as means for accomplishing embodiments of other processes describedherein in conjunction with other components of the system 100. Althoughthe process 600 is illustrated and described as a sequence of steps, itscontemplated that various embodiments of the process 600 may beperformed in any order or combination and need not include all of theillustrated steps.

In step 601, the routing module 305 receives a request to generate anunderground and/or interior route for a drone. The request, forinstance, can identify at least a destination and/or origin forcomputing the route. The destination can be an above ground locationthat is reachable by traveling through a network of underground and/orinterior passageways. Accordingly, the request can include above ground,underground, and/or interior portions. The above ground portion mayinclude the route from the beginning or end of the underground/interiorportions when the underground/interior passageways cannot directly reachthe desired above ground destination.

In step 603, the routing module 305 queries the digital map datarepresenting a network of underground/interior passageways (e.g., fromthe geographic database 113) for at least one underground/interiorpassageway of the network to reach a destination of the drone, whereinthe digital map data stores location data for a plurality of entrypoints, a plurality of exit points, or a combination thereof to thenetwork of underground/interior passageways.

In step 605, the routing module 305 can additionally or alternativelydetermine real-time data regarding an availability of the at least oneunderground/interior passageway to support travel by the drone. Forexample, for potential passageways that are tunnels/passageways fornon-drone traffic (e.g., subway or public transport trains forunderground tunnels, elevators in elevator shafts, etc.), the routingmodule 305 can query for public transport/elevator schedules and/orreal-time or near real-time positions of underground transport or othernon-drone entities (e.g., elevators) using the passageways. The routingmodule 305 can determine the data from the real-time data layerpublished in the geographic database as described above, and/or querythe data directly from public transport authorities or other providersof the data (e.g., services platform 121, services 123, and/or contentproviders 125). For sewers, the routing module 305 can determinereal-time data on the water levels in the sewers that are candidateroutes in order to find routes with the lowest water levels or waterlevels that can support drone operation. In summary, the real-time datacan be determined from any combination of sensor data, weather data,schedule data, etc. available from the geographic database 113,third-party data sources, and/or equivalent.

In step 607, the routing module 305 generates a route to the destinationvia the at least one underground/interior passageway based on thelocation data and/or the real-time data. For example, the route candirect the drone the appropriate entry/exit points of the network ofunderground/interior passageways that can reach the destinationaccording to specified preferences (e.g., shortest time, shortestdistance, most energy efficient, prefer transport tunnels, prefersewers, prefer interior passageways, etc.). With respect to an aerialdrone, the drone route can include a flight path or route constructed,at least in part, from variable flight variable including but notlimited to approach angle, height, distance the walls or sides of thepassageways or entry/exit points, locations where the drone rises ordescends, etc. When considering real-time data, the route can also begenerated to recommend or specify time slots to execute the route toreduce or avoid potential collisions or other obstacles (e.g., trains,elevators, water, etc.) in the passageways. For example, in non-dronetraffic tunnels, the routing module 305 can determine a time slot fordrone operation or travel so that the non-drone traffic is the tunnelsor passageways can be avoided based on the schedule data for thenon-drone or sensed/reported real-time locations of the non-dronetraffic. Alternatively, the route can be generated to avoid tunnels withdetected non-drone traffic (e.g., train traffic, elevator traffic, etc.)when travel at another time slot is not possible or not desired.Similarly, with respect to sewers, the route can be generated so thatdrone travel occurs when the water levels are compatible with droneoperation in the passageway (e.g., the water levels are low enough toprovide clearance for drone flight). For example, the route is generatedto avoid traveling in the sewer based on determining that the waterlevel is above or is expected to be above a threshold value. If anappropriate time slot through a candidate sewer line is not available ordesired, the routing module 305 can route the drone through other sewerlines instead.

In one embodiment, the routing module 305 can determine at least onewaypoint in or near the at least one underground passageway. The atleast waypoint provides a location for the drone to wait for theavailability of the at least one underground/interior passage based onthe real-time data. For example, the availability is limited only forlater sections of the route, the routing module 305 can create a routethat starts immediately but then directs the drone to wait or pause atcertain waypoints to allow the upcoming passageway to become availablefor drone travel (e.g., wait for a train/elevator to pass, wait for thewater level to drop, etc.). The route can specify the time period forthe drone to wait based on schedule data, sensor data, predictedweather, etc.

In an embodiment in which the drone requesting a route is capable ofdifferent modes of operation (e.g., flying mode, surface or ground-basedmode, submersible mode, etc.), the routing module 305 can select anunderground/interior route including passageways that support the samemodes of operation as the requesting drone by querying for passagewayswith digital map metadata matching the drone's mode of operation. Forexample, a drone supporting a ground-based mode can be routed throughpassageways supporting a surface or ground-based mode of operation. Incases where the drone supports multiple modes of operation and candynamically switch between the different modes, the routing module 305can generate multi-modal route for the drone. The multi-modal route, forinstance, can direct the drone to use a first mode (e.g., flying mode)for a first segment, and then a second mode (e.g., submersible mode) fora second segment. For example, when traveling through a partiallyflooded sewer line, the drone can be routed or instructed to fly in thesegments of the sewer with low or no water, and then switch to asubmersible mode with reaching the flooded section. Accordingly, therouting module 305 can generate the route to include data for initiatingthe at least one mode of operation by the drone for a correspondingportion of the least one underground passageway. The data, for instance,can be an instruction or trigger for switching modes of operation. Inanother example, when routing through the interior of a building, adrone can be instructed to fly through an elevator shaft and then travelon the ground through a public hallway connecting to another elevatorshaft or ventilation duct before resuming flight in the other shaft orduct. In this way, the drone can advantageously avoid flying in publichallway where it may be more likely to encounter unexpected objects orpeople, thereby reducing safety risks.

After generating the route, the routing module 305 can interact with thedrone configuration module 307 to provide the route to the drone. Forexample, the generated route or multiple candidate routes can betransmitted to the drone or a device of the drone operator (e.g., UE 127via an application 129 for controlling the drone 101) for selection orexecution by the drone.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example user interface forrequesting an underground route for a drone, according to oneembodiment. As shown, a UI 701 provides a user interface element 703 orwindow for entering a destination location 705 for a drone (e.g., anaerial drone or UAV). On inputting an address 705, the drone routingplatform 111 generates an underground route using the digital map dateof underground passageways and real-time passageway data (e.g., asstored in the geographic database 113). In this example, the dronerouting platform 111 calculates that the shortest route from the presentlocation of the drone to the destination address is through theunderground train tunnels. However, the real-time data collected by thedrone routing platform 111 indicates that the train tunnel in theshortest route is currently being used by a train and will be blockedfor the next 20 minutes. Based on this, the drone routing platform 111presents an alert message 707 providing an alternative route through thesewer lines. The drone routing platform 111 calculates that thealternative route through the sewers would increase the estimated timeof arrival by 15 mins and presents the drone operator with options 709to accept the rerouting through the sewers or to wait until the trainclears the shortest route.

Returning to FIG. 1, as shown, the system 100 comprises a drone 101equipped with a variety of sensors that is capable operating inunderground/interior passageways. In one embodiment, the drone 101 canfly or otherwise operate autonomously or under direct control via the UE127 that may include or be associated with one or more softwareapplications 129 supporting underground and/or interior drone routingaccording to the embodiments described herein. As previously discussed,the system 100 further includes drone routing platform 111 coupled tothe geographic database 113, wherein the drone routing platform 111 isperforms the functions associated with underground and/or interior dronemapping and routing as discussed with respect to the various embodimentsdescribed herein. In one embodiment, the drone 101, drone routingplatform 111, UE 127, and other components of the system 100 haveconnectivity to each other via the communication network 119.

In one embodiment, the drone 101 is a UAV capable of operatingautonomously or via a remote pilot using UE 127 to fly the drone 101 orconfigure a flight path or route for the drone 101. In one embodiment,the drone 101 is configured to travel using one or more modes ofoperation through underground and/or interior passageways. The drone 101many include any number of sensors including cameras, recording devices,communication devices, etc. By way example, the sensors may include, butare not limited to, a global positioning system (GPS) sensor forgathering location data based on signals from a positioning satellite,Light Detection And Ranging (LIDAR) for gathering distance data and/orgenerating depth maps, a network detection sensor for detecting wirelesssignals or receivers for different short-range communications (e.g.,Bluetooth®, Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi), Li-Fi, Near Field Communication(NFC), etc.), temporal information sensors, a camera/imaging sensor forgathering image data, and the like. The drone 101 may also includerecording devices for recording, storing, and/or streaming sensor and/orother telemetry data to the UE 127 and/or the drone routing platform 111for mapping or routing through underground passageways.

In one embodiment, the drone 101 is capable of being configured with andexecuting at least one underground and/or interior route (e.g., anunderground and/or interior flight path) according to the embodimentsdescribed herein. The drone can also be configured avoid objects (e.g.,trains, pedestrians, elevators, etc.) and/or obstructions (e.g., highwater levels) in the underground/interior passageways. In addition, thedrone 101 can be configured to observe restricted paths or routes. Forexample, the restricted paths may be based on governmental regulationsthat govern/restrict the path that the drone 101 may fly (e.g., FederalAviation Administration (FAA) policies regarding required distancesbetween objects). In one embodiment, the system 100 may also take intoaccount one or more pertinent environmental or weather conditions (e.g.,rain, water levels, sheer winds, etc. in and around undergroundpassageways and their entry/exit points) in determining anunderground/interior route or flight path.

In one embodiment, the drone 101 may determine contextual informationsuch as wind and weather conditions in route that may affect the drone101's ability to follow the specified underground/interior path or theabove ground/outside route to the underground/interior path (e.g., usingone or more onboard sensors) and then relay this information insubstantially real-time to the system 100. In one embodiment, the drone101 may request one or more modifications of the flight path based, atleast in part, on the determination of the contextual information or achange in the real-time conditions of the passageways (e.g., dynamicfeatures such as changed public transport schedules, or unexpected waterlevels). In one embodiment, the system 100 creates a data object torepresent the underground/interior route and may automatically modifythe route data object based on receipt of the contextual informationfrom the drone 101 or another source and then transmit the new routeobject to the drone 101 for execution. In one embodiment, the drone 101can determine or access the new route data object and/or determine oraccess just the relevant portions and adjust its current pathaccordingly. For example, in narrow passageways or passageways withrising water levels, the system 100 may condense the width of the drone101's flight path to better ensure that the UAV will avoid the sides ofthe passageway or the water therein.

By way of example, a UE 127 is any type of dedicated UAV/drone controlunit, mobile terminal, fixed terminal, or portable terminal including amobile handset, station, unit, device, multimedia computer, multimediatablet, Internet node, communicator, desktop computer, laptop computer,notebook computer, netbook computer, tablet computer, personalcommunication system (PCS) device, personal navigation device, personaldigital assistants (PDAs), audio/video player, digital camera/camcorder,positioning device, television receiver, radio broadcast receiver,electronic book device, game device, or any combination thereof,including the accessories and peripherals of these devices, or anycombination thereof. It is also contemplated that a UE 127 can supportany type of interface to the user (such as “wearable” circuitry, etc.).In one embodiment, a UE 127 may support any type of interface forpiloting or routing the drone 101. In addition, a UE 127 may facilitatevarious input means for receiving and generating information, including,but not restricted to, a touch screen capability, a keyboard and keypaddata entry, a voice-based input mechanism, and the like. Any known andfuture implementations of a UE 127 may also be applicable.

By way of example, the UE 127 and/or the drone 101 may executeapplications 129, which may include various applications such as anunderground/interior routing application, a location-based serviceapplication, a navigation application, a content provisioningapplication, a camera/imaging application, a media player application,an e-commerce application, a social networking application, and/or thelike. In one embodiment, the applications 129 may include one or morefeature recognition applications used for identifying or mappingprivacy-sensitive features or routes according to the embodimentsdescribed herein. In one embodiment, the application 129 may act as aclient for the drone routing platform 111 and perform one or morefunctions of the drone routing platform 111. In one embodiment, anapplication 129 may be considered as a Graphical User Interface (GUI)that can enable a user to configure an underground route or flight pathfor execution by drone 101 according to the embodiments describedherein.

In one embodiment, the communication network 119 of system 100 includesone or more networks such as a data network, a wireless network, atelephony network, or any combination thereof. It is contemplated thatthe data network may be any local area network (LAN), metropolitan areanetwork (MAN), wide area network (WAN), a public data network (e.g., theInternet), short range wireless network, or any other suitablepacket-switched network, such as a commercially owned, proprietarypacket-switched network, e.g., a proprietary cable or fiber-opticnetwork, and the like, or any combination thereof. In addition, thewireless network may be, for example, a cellular network and may employvarious technologies including enhanced data rates for global evolution(EDGE), general packet radio service (GPRS), global system for mobilecommunications (GSM), Internet protocol multimedia subsystem (IMS),universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS), etc., as well as anyother suitable wireless medium, e.g., worldwide interoperability formicrowave access (WiMAX), Long Term Evolution (LTE) networks, codedivision multiple access (CDMA), wideband code division multiple access(WCDMA), wireless fidelity (WiFi), wireless LAN (WLAN), Bluetooth®,Internet Protocol (IP) data casting, satellite, mobile ad-hoc network(MANET), and the like, or any combination thereof.

In one embodiment, the drone routing platform 111 can interact with theservices platform 121 to receive data (e.g., underground digital mapdata, passageway model data, real-time data about the availability ofunderground passageways, etc.) for providing underground and/or interiorrouting or operation of the drone 101. By way of example, the servicesplatform 121 may include one or more services 123 for providing content(e.g., 3D object models of passageways, LIDAR data, undergroundpassageway cartography data, 2D/3D imagery, etc.), provisioningservices, application services, storage services, mapping services,navigation services, contextual information determination services,location-based services, information-based services (e.g., weather),etc. By way of example, the services 123 may provide or store non-dronetraffic schedule data (e.g., train/subway schedules, elevator schedules,etc.), weather data, water level schedules, and/or other data used bythe embodiments describe herein. In one embodiment, the servicesplatform 121 may interact with the drone 101, UE 127, and/or dronerouting platform 111 to supplement or aid in processing of theunderground/interior passageway mapping and/or routing information.

By way of example, the drone 101, UE 127, drone routing platform 111,and the services platform 121 communicate with each other and othercomponents of the system 100 using well known, new or still developingprotocols. In this context, a protocol includes a set of rules defininghow the network nodes within the system 100 interact with each otherbased on information sent over the communication links. The protocolsare effective at different layers of operation within each node, fromgenerating and receiving physical signals of various types, to selectinga link for transferring those signals, to the format of informationindicated by those signals, to identifying which software applicationexecuting on a computer system sends or receives the information. Theconceptually different layers of protocols for exchanging informationover a network are described in the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI)Reference Model.

Communications between the network nodes are typically effected byexchanging discrete packets of data. Each packet typically comprises (1)header information associated with a particular protocol, and (2)payload information that follows the header information and containsinformation that may be processed independently of that particularprotocol. In some protocols, the packet includes (3) trailer informationfollowing the payload and indicating the end of the payload information.The header includes information such as the source of the packet, itsdestination, the length of the payload, and other properties used by theprotocol. Often, the data in the payload for the particular protocolincludes a header and payload for a different protocol associated with adifferent, higher layer of the OSI Reference Model. The header for aparticular protocol typically indicates a type for the next protocolcontained in its payload. The higher layer protocol is said to beencapsulated in the lower layer protocol. The headers included in apacket traversing multiple heterogeneous networks, such as the Internet,typically include a physical (layer 1) header, a data-link (layer 2)header, an internetwork (layer 3) header and a transport (layer 4)header, and various application (layer 5, layer 6 and layer 7) headersas defined by the OSI Reference Model.

FIG. 8 is a diagram of a geographic database 113 capable of storing mapdata for underground and/or interior drone mapping and routing,according to one embodiment. In one embodiment, the geographic database113 includes geographic data 801 used for (or configured to be compiledto be used for) mapping and/or navigation-related services, such as forrouting drones to create a 3D flightpath or route. In one embodiment,the 3D flightpath or route is executed a drone 101 for package deliveryto a target delivery location (e.g., a balcony or other location in atarget building). For example, the geographic database 801 stores modeldata (e.g., 3D object models of underground passageways and theirentry/exit points) among other related data.

In one embodiment, geographic features (e.g., two-dimensional orthree-dimensional features) are represented using polygons (e.g.,two-dimensional features) or polygon extrusions (e.g., three-dimensionalfeatures). For example, the edges of the polygons correspond to theboundaries or edges of the respective geographic feature. In the case ofa building, a two-dimensional polygon can be used to represent afootprint of the building, and a three-dimensional polygon extrusion canbe used to represent the three-dimensional surfaces of the building. Itis contemplated that although various embodiments are discussed withrespect to two-dimensional polygons, it is contemplated that theembodiments are also applicable to three-dimensional polygon extrusions,models, routes, etc. Accordingly, the terms polygons and polygonextrusions/models as used herein can be used interchangeably.

In one embodiment, the following terminology applies to therepresentation of geographic features in the geographic database 113.

“Node”—A point that terminates a link.

“Line segment”—A straight line connecting two points.

“Link” (or “edge”)—A contiguous, non-branching string of one or moreline segments terminating in a node at each end.

“Shape point”—A point along a link between two nodes (e.g., used toalter a shape of the link without defining new nodes).

“Oriented link”—A link that has a starting node (referred to as the“reference node”) and an ending node (referred to as the “non referencenode”).

“Simple polygon”—An interior area of an outer boundary formed by astring of oriented links that begins and ends in one node. In oneembodiment, a simple polygon does not cross itself.

“Polygon”—An area bounded by an outer boundary and none or at least oneinterior boundary (e.g., a hole or island). In one embodiment, a polygonis constructed from one outer simple polygon and none or at least oneinner simple polygon. A polygon is simple if it just consists of onesimple polygon, or complex if it has at least one inner simple polygon.

In one embodiment, the geographic database 113 follows certainconventions. For example, links do not cross themselves and do not crosseach other except at a node. Also, there are no duplicated shape points,nodes, or links. Two links that connect each other have a common node.In the geographic database 113, overlapping geographic features arerepresented by overlapping polygons. When polygons overlap, the boundaryof one polygon crosses the boundary of the other polygon. In thegeographic database 113, the location at which the boundary of onepolygon intersects they boundary of another polygon is represented by anode. In one embodiment, a node may be used to represent other locationsalong the boundary of a polygon than a location at which the boundary ofthe polygon intersects the boundary of another polygon. In oneembodiment, a shape point is not used to represent a point at which theboundary of a polygon intersects the boundary of another polygon.

As shown, the geographic data 801 of the database 113 includes node datarecords 803, road segment or link data records 805, POI data records807, underground/interior passageway data records 809,underground/interior routing data records 811, and indexes 813, forexample. More, fewer or different data records can be provided. In oneembodiment, additional data records (not shown) can include cartographic(“carto”) data records, routing data, and maneuver data. In oneembodiment, the indexes 813 may improve the speed of data retrievaloperations in the geographic database 113. In one embodiment, theindexes 813 may be used to quickly locate data without having to searchevery row in the geographic database 113 every time it is accessed. Forexample, in one embodiment, the indexes 813 can be a spatial index ofthe polygon points associated with stored feature polygons.

In exemplary embodiments, the road segment data records 805 are links orsegments representing roads, streets, or paths, as can be used in thecalculated route or recorded route information for determination of oneor more personalized routes. The node data records 803 are end pointscorresponding to the respective links or segments of the road segmentdata records 805. The road link data records 805 and the node datarecords 803 represent a road network, such as used by vehicles, cars,and/or other entities. In addition, the geographic database 113 cancontain path segment and node data records or other data that represent3D paths around 3D map features (e.g., terrain features, buildings,other structures, etc.) that occur above street level, such as whenrouting or representing flightpaths of aerial vehicles (e.g., drones101), for example.

The road/link segments and nodes can be associated with attributes, suchas geographic coordinates, street names, address ranges, speed limits,turn restrictions at intersections, and other navigation relatedattributes, as well as POIs, such as gasoline stations, hotels,restaurants, museums, stadiums, offices, automobile dealerships, autorepair shops, buildings, stores, parks, etc. The geographic database 113can include data about the POIs and their respective locations in thePOI data records 807. The geographic database 113 can also include dataabout places, such as cities, towns, or other communities, and othergeographic features, such as bodies of water, mountain ranges, etc. Suchplace or feature data can be part of the POI data records 807 or can beassociated with POIs or POI data records 807 (such as a data point usedfor displaying or representing a position of a city).

In one embodiment, the geographic database 113 can also includeunderground/interior passageway data records 809 for the digital mapdata representing mapped the network of mapped underground/interiorpassageways along with the entry/exit points, physical characteristicdata, supported drone modes of operation, waypoints for drones to wait,and/or any other related data as described in the embodiments above. Theunderground/interior digital map can also store model data (e.g., 3Dobject models) of the underground/interior passageways and theirentry/exit points for facilitate creating a drone flight path or routethrough the passageways. In one embodiment, the 3D model data of theunderground/interior passageways and entry/exit points can be createdfrom LiDAR, aerial/satellite-based 3D sensor data, and/or other 3Dsensor data collected for a geographic area. For example, mobile mappingvehicles equipped with LiDAR and/or equivalent sensors can provide 3Dmodel data. Passageway map data can also be obtained with portable orsmaller mapping devices/vehicles used to access the passageways forscanning or mapping. In one embodiment, the underground/interiorpassageway data records 809 can be associated with one or more of thenode records 803, road segment records 805, and/or POI data records 807so that the mapped passageways can inherit characteristics, properties,metadata, etc. of the associated records (e.g., location, address, POItype, etc.). In one embodiment, the system 100 (e.g., via the dronerouting platform 111 can use the additional characteristics, properties,metadata, etc. to generate underground and/or interior drone routes. Inone embodiment, the underground/interior passage data records 809 caninclude a data layer for storing real-time data on the availability ofthe passageways to support drone travel according to the embodimentsdescribed herein.

In one embodiment, the system 100 is capable of generating undergroundand/or interior drone routes using the digital map data and/or real-timedata stored in the geographic database 113. The resulting undergroundrouting and guidance can be stored in the underground/interior routingdata records 811. By way of example, the routes stored in the datarecords 811 can be created for individual 3D flightpaths or routes asthey are requested by drones or their operators. In this way, previouslygenerated underground and/or interior routes can be reused for futuredrone travel through the underground passageways to the same targetlocation.

In one embodiment, the underground and/or interior routes stored in theunderground/interior routing data records 811 can be specific tocharacteristics of the drone 101 (e.g., drone type, size, supportedmodes of operation) and/or other characteristics of the passageways orroute. In addition, the underground and/or interior routes generatedaccording to the embodiments described herein can be based on contextualparameters (e.g., time-of-day, day-of-week, season, etc.).

In one embodiment, the geographic database 113 can be maintained by theservices platform 121 and/or any of the services 123 of the servicesplatform 121 (e.g., a map developer). The map developer can collectgeographic data to generate and enhance the geographic database 113.There can be different ways used by the map developer to collect data.These ways can include obtaining data from other sources, such asmunicipalities or respective geographic authorities. In addition, themap developer can employ aerial drones (e.g., using the embodiments ofthe privacy-routing process described herein) or field vehicles (e.g.,mapping drones or vehicles equipped with mapping sensor arrays, e.g.,LiDAR) to travel along roads and/or within buildings/structuresthroughout the geographic region to observe features and/or recordinformation about them, for example. Also, remote sensing, such asaerial or satellite photography or other sensor data, can be used.

The geographic database 113 can be a master geographic database storedin a format that facilitates updating, maintenance, and development. Forexample, the master geographic database or data in the master geographicdatabase can be in an Oracle spatial format or other spatial format,such as for development or production purposes. The Oracle spatialformat or development/production database can be compiled into adelivery format, such as a geographic data files (GDF) format. The datain the production and/or delivery formats can be compiled or furthercompiled to form geographic database products or databases, which can beused in end user navigation devices or systems.

For example, geographic data is compiled (such as into a platformspecification format (PSF) format) to organize and/or configure the datafor performing navigation-related functions and/or services, such asroute calculation, route guidance, map display, speed calculation,distance and travel time functions, and other functions, by a navigationcapable device or vehicle, such as by the drone 101, for example. Thenavigation-related functions can correspond to 3D flightpath ornavigation, 3D route planning for package delivery, or other types ofnavigation. The compilation to produce the end user databases can beperformed by a party or entity separate from the map developer. Forexample, a customer of the map developer, such as a navigation devicedeveloper or other end user device developer, can perform compilation ona received geographic database in a delivery format to produce one ormore compiled navigation databases.

The processes described herein for providing underground and/or interiordrone mapping and routing may be advantageously implemented viasoftware, hardware (e.g., general processor, Digital Signal Processing(DSP) chip, an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), FieldProgrammable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), etc.), firmware or a combinationthereof. Such exemplary hardware for performing the described functionsis detailed below.

FIG. 9 illustrates a computer system 900 upon which an embodiment of theinvention may be implemented. Computer system 900 is programmed (e.g.,via computer program code or instructions) to provide underground and/orinterior drone mapping and routing as described herein and includes acommunication mechanism such as a bus 910 for passing informationbetween other internal and external components of the computer system900. Information (also called data) is represented as a physicalexpression of a measurable phenomenon, typically electric voltages, butincluding, in other embodiments, such phenomena as magnetic,electromagnetic, pressure, chemical, biological, molecular, atomic,sub-atomic and quantum interactions. For example, north and southmagnetic fields, or a zero and non-zero electric voltage, represent twostates (0, 1) of a binary digit (bit). Other phenomena can representdigits of a higher base. A superposition of multiple simultaneousquantum states before measurement represents a quantum bit (qubit). Asequence of one or more digits constitutes digital data that is used torepresent a number or code for a character. In some embodiments,information called analog data is represented by a near continuum ofmeasurable values within a particular range.

A bus 910 includes one or more parallel conductors of information sothat information is transferred quickly among devices coupled to the bus910. One or more processors 902 for processing information are coupledwith the bus 910.

A processor 902 performs a set of operations on information as specifiedby computer program code related to providing underground and/orinterior drone mapping and routing. The computer program code is a setof instructions or statements providing instructions for the operationof the processor and/or the computer system to perform specifiedfunctions. The code, for example, may be written in a computerprogramming language that is compiled into a native instruction set ofthe processor. The code may also be written directly using the nativeinstruction set (e.g., machine language). The set of operations includebringing information in from the bus 910 and placing information on thebus 910. The set of operations also typically include comparing two ormore units of information, shifting positions of units of information,and combining two or more units of information, such as by addition ormultiplication or logical operations like OR, exclusive OR (XOR), andAND. Each operation of the set of operations that can be performed bythe processor is represented to the processor by information calledinstructions, such as an operation code of one or more digits. Asequence of operations to be executed by the processor 902, such as asequence of operation codes, constitute processor instructions, alsocalled computer system instructions or, simply, computer instructions.Processors may be implemented as mechanical, electrical, magnetic,optical, chemical or quantum components, among others, alone or incombination.

Computer system 900 also includes a memory 904 coupled to bus 910. Thememory 904, such as a random access memory (RAM) or other dynamicstorage device, stores information including processor instructions forproviding underground and/or interior drone mapping and routing. Dynamicmemory allows information stored therein to be changed by the computersystem 900. RAM allows a unit of information stored at a location calleda memory address to be stored and retrieved independently of informationat neighboring addresses. The memory 904 is also used by the processor902 to store temporary values during execution of processorinstructions. The computer system 900 also includes a read only memory(ROM) 906 or other static storage device coupled to the bus 910 forstoring static information, including instructions, that is not changedby the computer system 900. Some memory is composed of volatile storagethat loses the information stored thereon when power is lost. Alsocoupled to bus 910 is a non-volatile (persistent) storage device 908,such as a magnetic disk, optical disk or flash card, for storinginformation, including instructions, that persists even when thecomputer system 900 is turned off or otherwise loses power.

Information, including instructions for providing underground and/orinterior drone mapping and routing, is provided to the bus 910 for useby the processor from an external input device 912, such as a keyboardcontaining alphanumeric keys operated by a human user, or a sensor. Asensor detects conditions in its vicinity and transforms thosedetections into physical expression compatible with the measurablephenomenon used to represent information in computer system 900. Otherexternal devices coupled to bus 910, used primarily for interacting withhumans, include a display device 914, such as a cathode ray tube (CRT)or a liquid crystal display (LCD), or plasma screen or printer forpresenting text or images, and a pointing device 916, such as a mouse ora trackball or cursor direction keys, or motion sensor, for controllinga position of a small cursor image presented on the display 914 andissuing commands associated with graphical elements presented on thedisplay 914. In some embodiments, for example, in embodiments in whichthe computer system 900 performs all functions automatically withouthuman input, one or more of external input device 912, display device914 and pointing device 916 is omitted.

In the illustrated embodiment, special purpose hardware, such as anapplication specific integrated circuit (ASIC) 920, is coupled to bus910. The special purpose hardware is configured to perform operationsnot performed by processor 902 quickly enough for special purposes.Examples of application specific ICs include graphics accelerator cardsfor generating images for display 914, cryptographic boards forencrypting and decrypting messages sent over a network, speechrecognition, and interfaces to special external devices, such as roboticarms and medical scanning equipment that repeatedly perform some complexsequence of operations that are more efficiently implemented inhardware.

Computer system 900 also includes one or more instances of acommunications interface 970 coupled to bus 910. Communication interface970 provides a one-way or two-way communication coupling to a variety ofexternal devices that operate with their own processors, such asprinters, scanners and external disks. In general the coupling is with anetwork link 978 that is connected to a local network 980 to which avariety of external devices with their own processors are connected. Forexample, communication interface 970 may be a parallel port or a serialport or a universal serial bus (USB) port on a personal computer. Insome embodiments, communications interface 970 is an integrated servicesdigital network (ISDN) card or a digital subscriber line (DSL) card or atelephone modem that provides an information communication connection toa corresponding type of telephone line. In some embodiments, acommunication interface 970 is a cable modem that converts signals onbus 910 into signals for a communication connection over a coaxial cableor into optical signals for a communication connection over a fiberoptic cable. As another example, communications interface 970 may be alocal area network (LAN) card to provide a data communication connectionto a compatible LAN, such as Ethernet. Wireless links may also beimplemented. For wireless links, the communications interface 970 sendsor receives or both sends and receives electrical, acoustic orelectromagnetic signals, including infrared and optical signals, thatcarry information streams, such as digital data. For example, inwireless handheld devices, such as mobile telephones like cell phones,the communications interface 970 includes a radio band electromagnetictransmitter and receiver called a radio transceiver. In certainembodiments, the communications interface 970 enables connection to thecommunication network 119 for providing underground and/or interiordrone mapping and routing.

The term computer-readable medium is used herein to refer to any mediumthat participates in providing information to processor 902, includinginstructions for execution. Such a medium may take many forms,including, but not limited to, non-volatile media, volatile media andtransmission media. Non-volatile media include, for example, optical ormagnetic disks, such as storage device 908. Volatile media include, forexample, dynamic memory 904. Transmission media include, for example,coaxial cables, copper wire, fiber optic cables, and carrier waves thattravel through space without wires or cables, such as acoustic waves andelectromagnetic waves, including radio, optical and infrared waves.Signals include man-made transient variations in amplitude, frequency,phase, polarization or other physical properties transmitted through thetransmission media. Common forms of computer-readable media include, forexample, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, hard disk, magnetic tape, anyother magnetic medium, a CD-ROM, CDRW, DVD, any other optical medium,punch cards, paper tape, optical mark sheets, any other physical mediumwith patterns of holes or other optically recognizable indicia, a RAM, aPROM, an EPROM, a FLASH-EPROM, any other memory chip or cartridge, acarrier wave, or any other medium from which a computer can read.

FIG. 10 illustrates a chip set 1000 upon which an embodiment of theinvention may be implemented. Chip set 1000 is programmed to provideunderground and/or interior drone mapping and routing as describedherein and includes, for instance, the processor and memory componentsdescribed with respect to FIG. 9 incorporated in one or more physicalpackages (e.g., chips). By way of example, a physical package includesan arrangement of one or more materials, components, and/or wires on astructural assembly (e.g., a baseboard) to provide one or morecharacteristics such as physical strength, conservation of size, and/orlimitation of electrical interaction. It is contemplated that in certainembodiments the chip set can be implemented in a single chip.

In one embodiment, the chip set 1000 includes a communication mechanismsuch as a bus 1001 for passing information among the components of thechip set 1000. A processor 1003 has connectivity to the bus 1001 toexecute instructions and process information stored in, for example, amemory 1005. The processor 1003 may include one or more processing coreswith each core configured to perform independently. A multi-coreprocessor enables multiprocessing within a single physical package.Examples of a multi-core processor include two, four, eight, or greaternumbers of processing cores. Alternatively or in addition, the processor1003 may include one or more microprocessors configured in tandem viathe bus 1001 to enable independent execution of instructions,pipelining, and multithreading. The processor 1003 may also beaccompanied with one or more specialized components to perform certainprocessing functions and tasks such as one or more digital signalprocessors (DSP) 1007, or one or more application-specific integratedcircuits (ASIC) 1009. A DSP 1007 typically is configured to processreal-world signals (e.g., sound) in real time independently of theprocessor 1003. Similarly, an ASIC 1009 can be configured to performedspecialized functions not easily performed by a general purposedprocessor. Other specialized components to aid in performing theinventive functions described herein include one or more fieldprogrammable gate arrays (FPGA) (not shown), one or more controllers(not shown), or one or more other special-purpose computer chips.

The processor 1003 and accompanying components have connectivity to thememory 1005 via the bus 1001. The memory 1005 includes both dynamicmemory (e.g., RAM, magnetic disk, writable optical disk, etc.) andstatic memory (e.g., ROM, CD-ROM, etc.) for storing executableinstructions that when executed perform the inventive steps describedherein to provide underground and/or interior drone mapping and routing.The memory 1005 also stores the data associated with or generated by theexecution of the inventive steps.

FIG. 11 is a diagram of exemplary components of a mobile terminal 1101(e.g., client device such as the UE 127 or drone or part thereof)capable of operating in the system of FIG. 1, according to oneembodiment. Generally, a radio receiver is often defined in terms offront-end and back-end characteristics. The front-end of the receiverencompasses all of the Radio Frequency (RF) circuitry whereas theback-end encompasses all of the base-band processing circuitry.Pertinent internal components of the telephone include a Main ControlUnit (MCU) 1103, a Digital Signal Processor (DSP) 1105, and areceiver/transmitter unit including a microphone gain control unit and aspeaker gain control unit. A main display unit 1107 provides a displayto the user in support of various applications and mobile stationfunctions that offer automatic contact matching. An audio functioncircuitry 1109 includes a microphone 1111 and microphone amplifier thatamplifies the speech signal output from the microphone 1111. Theamplified speech signal output from the microphone 1111 is fed to acoder/decoder (CODEC) 1113.

A radio section 1115 amplifies power and converts frequency in order tocommunicate with a base station, which is included in a mobilecommunication system, via antenna 1117. The power amplifier (PA) 1119and the transmitter/modulation circuitry are operationally responsive tothe MCU 1103, with an output from the PA 1119 coupled to the duplexer1121 or circulator or antenna switch, as known in the art. The PA 1119also couples to a battery interface and power control unit 1120.

In use, a user of mobile station 1101 speaks into the microphone 1111and his or her voice along with any detected background noise isconverted into an analog voltage. The analog voltage is then convertedinto a digital signal through the Analog to Digital Converter (ADC)1123. The control unit 1103 routes the digital signal into the DSP 1105for processing therein, such as speech encoding, channel encoding,encrypting, and interleaving. In one embodiment, the processed voicesignals are encoded, by units not separately shown, using a cellulartransmission protocol such as global evolution (EDGE), general packetradio service (GPRS), global system for mobile communications (GSM),Internet protocol multimedia subsystem (IMS), universal mobiletelecommunications system (UMTS), etc., as well as any other suitablewireless medium, e.g., microwave access (WiMAX), Long Term Evolution(LTE) networks, code division multiple access (CDMA), wireless fidelity(WiFi), satellite, and the like.

The encoded signals are then routed to an equalizer 1125 forcompensation of any frequency-dependent impairments that occur duringtransmission though the air such as phase and amplitude distortion.After equalizing the bit stream, the modulator 1127 combines the signalwith a RF signal generated in the RF interface 1129. The modulator 1127generates a sine wave by way of frequency or phase modulation. In orderto prepare the signal for transmission, an up-converter 1131 combinesthe sine wave output from the modulator 1127 with another sine wavegenerated by a synthesizer 1133 to achieve the desired frequency oftransmission. The signal is then sent through a PA 1119 to increase thesignal to an appropriate power level. In practical systems, the PA 1119acts as a variable gain amplifier whose gain is controlled by the DSP1105 from information received from a network base station. The signalis then filtered within the duplexer 1121 and optionally sent to anantenna coupler 1135 to match impedances to provide maximum powertransfer. Finally, the signal is transmitted via antenna 1117 to a localbase station. An automatic gain control (AGC) can be supplied to controlthe gain of the final stages of the receiver. The signals may beforwarded from there to a remote telephone which may be another cellulartelephone, other mobile phone or a land-line connected to a PublicSwitched Telephone Network (PSTN), or other telephony networks.

Voice signals transmitted to the mobile station 1101 are received viaantenna 1117 and immediately amplified by a low noise amplifier (LNA)1137. A down-converter 1139 lowers the carrier frequency while thedemodulator 1141 strips away the RF leaving only a digital bit stream.The signal then goes through the equalizer 1125 and is processed by theDSP 1105. A Digital to Analog Converter (DAC) 1143 converts the signaland the resulting output is transmitted to the user through the speaker1145, all under control of a Main Control Unit (MCU) 1103—which can beimplemented as a Central Processing Unit (CPU) (not shown).

The MCU 1103 receives various signals including input signals from thekeyboard 1147. The keyboard 1147 and/or the MCU 1103 in combination withother user input components (e.g., the microphone 1111) comprise a userinterface circuitry for managing user input. The MCU 1103 runs a userinterface software to facilitate user control of at least some functionsof the mobile station 1101 to provide underground and/or interior dronemapping and routing. The MCU 1103 also delivers a display command and aswitch command to the display 1107 and to the speech output switchingcontroller, respectively. Further, the MCU 1103 exchanges informationwith the DSP 1105 and can access an optionally incorporated SIM card1149 and a memory 1151. In addition, the MCU 1103 executes variouscontrol functions required of the station. The DSP 1105 may, dependingupon the implementation, perform any of a variety of conventionaldigital processing functions on the voice signals. Additionally, DSP1105 determines the background noise level of the local environment fromthe signals detected by microphone 1111 and sets the gain of microphone1111 to a level selected to compensate for the natural tendency of theuser of the mobile station 1101.

The CODEC 1113 includes the ADC 1123 and DAC 1143. The memory 1151stores various data including call incoming tone data and is capable ofstoring other data including music data received via, e.g., the globalInternet. The software module could reside in RAM memory, flash memory,registers, or any other form of writable computer-readable storagemedium known in the art including non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium. For example, the memory device 1151 may be, but notlimited to, a single memory, CD, DVD, ROM, RAM, EEPROM, optical storage,or any other non-volatile or non-transitory storage medium capable ofstoring digital data.

An optionally incorporated SIM card 1149 carries, for instance,important information, such as the cellular phone number, the carriersupplying service, subscription details, and security information. TheSIM card 1149 serves primarily to identify the mobile station 1101 on aradio network. The card 1149 also contains a memory for storing apersonal telephone number registry, text messages, and user specificmobile station settings.

While the invention has been described in connection with a number ofembodiments and implementations, the invention is not so limited butcovers various obvious modifications and equivalent arrangements, whichfall within the purview of the appended claims. Although features of theinvention are expressed in certain combinations among the claims, it iscontemplated that these features can be arranged in any combination andorder.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for routing a drone using digital mapdata representing a network of underground passageways comprising:querying the digital map data for at least one underground passageway ofthe network to reach a destination of the drone, wherein the digital mapdata includes location data for a plurality of entry points, a pluralityof exit points, or a combination thereof to the network of undergroundpassageways; and generating a route to the destination via the at leastone underground passageway based on the location data.
 2. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising: determining real-time data regarding anavailability of the at least one underground passageway to supporttravel by the drone; and determining a time slot for the drone toexecute the route based on the real-time data.
 3. The method of claim 2,wherein the at least one passageway includes an underground tunnelsupporting non-drone traffic, and wherein the real-time data includesschedule data for the non-drone traffic through the underground tunnel.4. The method of claim 3, wherein the route is generated to avoid thenon-drone traffic based on the schedule data.
 5. The method of claim 2,wherein the at least one underground passageway includes a sewer, andwherein the real-time data includes sensor data, weather data, or acombination thereof indicating a water level in the sewer.
 6. The methodof claim 5, wherein the route is generated to avoid traveling in thesewer based on determining that the water level is above or is expectedto be above a threshold value.
 7. The method of claim 2, furthercomprising: determining at least one waypoint in or near the at leastone underground passageway, wherein the at least waypoint provides alocation for the drone to wait for the availability of the at least oneunderground passage based on the real-time data.
 8. The method of claim1, further comprising: determining at least one mode of operationsupported by the drone, wherein the at least one underground passagewayis queried based on the at least one mode of operation.
 9. The method ofclaim 8, wherein the route is generated to include data for initiatingthe at least one mode of operation by the drone for a correspondingportion of the least one underground passageway.
 10. The method of claim8, wherein the at least one mode of operation includes a flying mode, asurface mode, a submersible mode, or a combination thereof.
 11. Anapparatus for routing a drone using digital map data representing anetwork of underground passageways comprising: at least one processor;and at least one memory including computer program code for one or moreprograms, the at least one memory and the computer program codeconfigured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to:query the digital map data for at least one underground passageway ofthe network to reach a destination of the drone, wherein the digital mapdata is associated with real-time data regarding an availability of theat least one underground passage way to support travel by the drone; andgenerate a route to the destination via the at least one undergroundpassageway based on the real-time data.
 12. The apparatus of claim 11,wherein the apparatus is further caused to: determine a time for thedrone to execute the route based on the real-time data.
 13. Theapparatus of claim 11, wherein the digital map data further storeslocation data for a plurality of entry points, a plurality of exitpoints, or a combination thereof to the network of the undergroundpassageways; and wherein the route is further based on the locationdata.
 14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the at least one passagewayincludes an underground tunnel supporting non-drone traffic, and whereinthe real-time data includes schedule data for the non-drone trafficthrough the underground tunnel.
 15. The apparatus of claim 11, whereinthe at least one underground passageway includes a sewer, and whereinthe real-time data includes sensor data, weather data, or a combinationthereof indicating a water level in the at sewer.
 16. A non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium for routing a drone using digital mapdata representing a network of underground passageways, interiorpassageways, or a combination thereof, carrying one or more sequences ofone or more instructions which, when executed by one or more processors,cause an apparatus to perform: querying the digital map data for atleast one passageway of the network to reach a destination of the drone,wherein the digital map data includes at least one of: location data fora plurality of entry points, a plurality of exit points, or acombination thereof to the network of underground passageways, interiorpassageways, or a combination thereof; and real-time data regarding anavailability of the at least one passageway to support travel by thedrone; and generating a route to the destination via the at least onepassageway based on the location data.
 17. The non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the at least onepassageway includes an elevator shaft.
 18. The non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the route isgenerated to include at least one waypoint in or near the at least onepassageway; and wherein the at least waypoint provides a location forthe drone to wait for the availability of the at least one passagewaybased on the real-time data.
 19. The non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium of claim 16, wherein the route is generated to includedata for initiating at least one mode of operation by the drone for acorresponding mode of operation supported by the least one passageway.20. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 19,wherein the at least one mode of operation includes a flying mode, asurface mode, a submersible mode, or a combination thereof.